RM24.2 MLN FRAUD: COPS DETAINED 13 INDIVIDUALS, INCLUDING FOUR BANK EMPLOYEES

KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 (Bernama) -- Thirteen individuals, including four bank employees, have been detained to assist in the investigation of the fraudulent withdrawals of RM24.2 million from several fixed deposit accounts.

Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohamed Ramli Yoosuf said the suspects consisted of eight men and five women aged between 22 and 54.

“Twelve individuals were detained in Sabah and one was detained in Perlis. Four of them are bank employees,” he said in a statement here today.

He said the suspects are being remanded until Friday, and a remand order for one person expires tomorrow, while another has been released on police bail.

He said that the investigation into the case would continue under Section 420 of the Penal Code.

On June 16, it was reported that a man in his 40s, suspected to be the mastermind of a syndicate, was arrested in connection with the case following the detention of a female bank employee in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, on June 13.

Ramli said that investigations revealed the involvement of syndicate members from within and outside the bank, who conspired to facilitate the unauthorised withdrawals.

He mentioned that the police received four reports from account holders and bank staff in early June in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, after the victims noticed suspicious cash withdrawals from their fixed deposit accounts in Kota Kinabalu.

Police believed that more people were involved, he added.

-- BERNAMA